Wait For Me
by LetsCallItFate
Summary: FutureFic. Rachel is living her dream life in New York, while Puck watches from the sidelines. But when her husband dies, and she's left alone, he's the only one that can save her. Puckleberry
1. I wish I could say it, but I cant

**A/N Wow. So this is going to be my very first multi chapter Puckleberry story, very exciting. I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and I think that it could make a pretty good story. Its set about ten years after they graduate, so lets say all the Gleeks are about 28/29? The dates are there to help with confusion as things will jump around a bit. This story is like my little baby, so I hope everyone likes it, and if you do please review as theres nothing more motivating than a string of reviews :) Its not all planned out yet so if you have any suggestions let me know and I'll see if I can work them into my overall plan :) So enjoy and let me know what you think :P**

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**March 12****th**** – Lima, Ohio.**

He'd gotten the invitation in the mail that day. It was nestled among all the bills and leaflets all smug, with its thick creamy envelope and swirly writing. _Her writing._He had nearly set fire to it, because he didn't have to open it to know what it was, it was pretty damn obvious.

Even though he spent his weekend drinking and picking up random girls, it didn't mean that he didn't miss her so damn much. Sometimes he could go days without really thinking about her, others he would lay awake until his alarm went off playing back their breakup over and over, wishing it had gone differently. Wishing that he could just turn back time, and never storm out of that house. Occasionally he'd be working on a garden and a girl would come out with the house, and for a moment his heart would stop and he would swear it was her. Usually it was just a woman with chocolate hair.

He liked to think that she still thought about him too, that maybe some days she'd come home and curl up in one of his hoodies and imagine he was there with her. In his head this particular daydream always ended up with her flying home and arriving on his doorstep late at night. He wondered if she still lived in their flat, or if she'd moved out right after he did. If she and Finn lived there, in the flat that he had slaved away for. If she and him had sex all over_ their_ bed, or in _their_ shower. Did they go out to eat at that vegan restaurant_ he had_ found in the village, or go to that Italian cafe that Rachel adored.

He wanted to know if she was happy now. If_ he _made her happy.

Quinn had called later that morning demanding to know whether he had received an invite. His stomach had sunk, even though he kind of already knew. Instead he'd grumbled something indistinct and pretended he had just woken up.

"Its your last chance Puckerman." She had said down the phone, ignoring his protests about needing sleep, "If she marries Finn then that's it, you'll never get her back."

"Who says I want her back?" He'd replied haughtily, giving up on his act of sleepiness, Quinn knew him too well for it to fool her.

She'd laughed at him for several minutes and then hung up. He wondered how Sam could bear being married to her.

He opened the envelope after that, smiling slightly at the star covered card, clearly Rachels choice.

_Hiram and Leroy Berry invite_

_Noah Puckerman_

_To the wedding of their daughter_

_Rachel Barbra Berry_

_To Finn Christopher Hudson_

_On June 15__th_

It shouldn't have hurt so bad, but seeing it in writing was a million times worse than hearing it from Quinn. It was so much more permanent, real. She was going to marry him, promise to love him forever in front of all her friends and he was meant to just stand by and watch? He was pretty sure that he couldn't do that.

* * *

**June 15****th ****– New York City.**

He wasn't coming. He had never RSVP'd but Quinn had told her that he had got the invitation. She hated to admit it but part of her hoped that he was going to come to New York and beg her to forgive him, give him one more chance. She would have said no obviously, she was extremely happy with Finn, but it would have been nice to have the satisfaction of hurting him the way he had hurt her when he slept with that girl. At least Finn had never cheated on her.

_She and Finn had broken up in Junior year, and she had started dating Noah almost a year later. They fought and argued more than they got along, but it worked for them. When she got into Julliard she expected their relationship to come to an end, but instead he came with her to New York and took a job as a fireman while she studied. They rented an apartment together and he was happy to pay all the bills while she divided her time between studying and auditioning for every part she heard about. _

_Her big break had come halfway through her senior year, a chorus member in the revival of Funny Girl. When she got the news she had screamed and jumped into his arms, and in that moment everything was perfect. But their relationship struggled more and more, as she spent all her spare time at rehearsals and he picked up more and more shifts, trying to save up enough for a deposit on a home of their own. The summer she graduated they moved into their own apartment. It was tiny, with only a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living area but it was theirs. Things got easier after that, Rachel was earning money too now so he didn't have to work quite as much, and they could go out now, see shows and go to dinner. While still in Funny Girl she was cast as Maria in an off Broadway play, and so she traded in her days on Broadway singing back up for, the lead in West Side Story. _

_Their lives continued like this for another two years, Rachel bouncing from play to play, while he saved up for something else. It all fell apart so quickly. It was a Tuesday, and he'd arrived home late, because he'd had to stop by a certain shop on his way home. He'd found her sitting on the couch, smiling down at her phone as she texted. Her hair was loose and wavy, and he thought she looked like an angel, his angel. _

_He had sat down beside her and kissed her, relaxing into her when he saw her phone._

"_Why you texting Finn?" His voice had been so sharp, that she'd jumped a little._

"_We were just finalising plans for tomorrow." She had replied more haughtily than she had intended, she was waiting to hear back from a producer and her stress levels were through the roof._

"_Why, are you seeing him?" He'd pulled away now, and was looking down at her with anger burning in his eyes._

_Rachel looked away, not wanting to meet his eyes._

"_Finn and I have lunch together every week. Did I never mention it?"_

"_No you fucking didn't." He had literally growled at her, before standing up._

"_Noah..." She was on her feet immediately, her hand reaching to touch his arm but he shook her off._

"_Go see loverboy." _

"_You're being ridiculous." She had protested, as he reached for his jacket, "There's nothing going on with Finn, we're just friends. I love you Noah, not him. Noah, listen to me, please."_

_He had walked out the door without looking back. Rachel retreated to the sofa and curled up in a ball and cried herself to sleep. _

_Her phone rang around midnight, and woken her up. She spoke to the producer for a few minutes before feigning tiredness, and curling back up. She didn't fall asleep though, she wanted to be awake when he came home. The clock ticked by, and night turned into morning but no Noah. _

_He'd stumbled in the door at 6am, half drunk and smelling of whiskey and sex. She'd met his eyes and her own had welled up with tears._

"_Rach..." He had moved towards her ,his eyes soft now, knowing that he had fucked up way more than she had._

_She had closed her eyes and turned away, unable to look at him._

"_How could you do this?" She had whispered into the silence, a tear trickling down her cheek._

_He didn't know, and he didn't think she would accept the excuse that he was drunk and angry. Hell, he didn't even accept that excuse._

"_How?" She has turned back around to face him, her voice cracking with emotion._

"_How Noah?" He tried to pull her close but she pushed him away and hit him, trying to keep him away._

"_Baby..." She turned away again, ignoring his word._

"_You need to go." _

"_Rachel, don't do this, I know I fucked up but." _

_She spun around looking him directly in the eye._

"_Leave Puck." _

Rachel blinked as she brought herself back to reality and tried to focus on her reflection. Today was about her and Finn, and the last thing she should be thinking of was Noah and there breakup. He'd left an hour after their conversation, and she had cried for a couple of hours, before showering and meeting Finn as planned, where she had shared the news that she had been cast as the lead in Funny Girl – On Broadway. The rest was history.

"Rachel?" Brittany poked her head around the door, and smiled at her.

"Hey Britt." Rachel replied softly.

"He'd definitely not there, I checked again."

Rachel nodded and Brittany sat down next to her friend and took her hand in hers.

"Rach, maybe you shouldn't marry Finn." Rachel snapped her head round to look at Brittany. Brittany had moved to New York after college and was now a choreographer for Broadway shows and over the last couple of years she and Rachel had become really close.

"Of course I should. Me and Finn are perfect for each other." She stood up and smoothed down her dress, "I was merely curious to whether Noah would show up to support me, but nevertheless I really couldn't care less about whether he is out there or not. Now, does my hair look okay?"

"You look beautiful, like a swan princess. But you're not a swan .I like swans though because they're like ducks, but not yellow."

"Thanks Britt. Lets go get married then? My Daddies are waiting in the next room."

Rachel gathered her train and begun to move towards the door, but stopped when she realised Brittany wasn't following.

"Britt?"

"I don't want to marry you Rachel. I want to marry San."

Rachel laughed and continued on her way to the aisle.

* * *

**June 15****th**** – Lima, Ohio.**

Okay, he knows that its really shitty of him to not go, but seriously he just cant. He knows that hes being a total wimp and he should suck it up and pretend he's happy for her, but he cant.

He was going to write a note and send a vase or something, because thats what you do when people get married, but then he realised that if she wanted a damn vase she could get her _husband_ to buy her one.

And what could he say? Dont marry the douche, marry me, I know I fucked up but I got a ring. He wasn't sure that would cut it. Anyway, Rachel was happy with Finn and he should just leave it be.

His phone buzzed from next to him, and he sighed as he saw Quinns name flashing across the screen.

"Q, seriously I'm not in the mood."

She sniffed, "Rachel looks beautiful."

"I'm sure she does." He sighed, he had spent the whole of last night imagining her in her dress, he knew she would look perfect, she always did.

"Everyone's here."

"Quinn, I get it, I fucked up."

Quinn stayed silent for a moment.

"She sent Brittany to look for you before the ceremony. I think she was meant to be subtle, but she just asked everyone if they'd seen you."

He didn't say anything, and just waited for her to speak.

"I think she wanted you to stop the wedding."

"Like fuck she did. She broke up with me, I was going to propose to her, she told me to leave." He'd never told anyone that, about the ring that still burnt a hole in his draw, not even Quinn.

"Puck, you slept with another woman, what did you expect? She was angry, she wanted you to fall to your knees and beg for forgiveness, she wanted you to fight for her."

"She told me to go."

"She's Berry!" Quinn cried out in frustration, "She wanted a scene, you know her she's the biggest drama queen going. She loved you, she could've gotten over it."

"Q?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think I have a chance?"

"I think you had a chance five hours ago. I think that she and Finn are never going to break up now. Its too late Puck."

"Why d'fuck didn't you say something then?" He growled, running his hand over his Mohawk in aggravation.

"I told you to come." She replied in a smug little voice.

"Fuck you." He muttered under his breath, but if she heard she chose to ignore him.

"I have to go now, Sam and I are going to dance."

"Later."

"Puck?"

"Yeah?"

"Dont kill yourself or anything."

He hung up after that comment, because really, there were only so many snarky comments a man could take and he needed to drink a whole bottle of JD to make the pain in his chest go away.


	2. Look for me, and i'll be there

**A/N So thank you to those who did review, it was really nice. But come on guys, 50 people have an alert on this story and only 4 could be bothered to update? It would mean a lot if you could. Anyway, this chapter is quite angsty, but the next one will be a lot lighter and filled with a whole lot more Puckleberry :) So enjoy and review please :)**

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**November 23****rd**** – Lima, Ohio.**

Puck had been peacefully dreaming when the shrill noise of his phone had woken him up.

"D'fuck?" He murmured as he batted his hand around trying to grab it, just so it would shut the fuck up.

"Who is it?" He moaned half asleep, his eyes still closed.

"Puck?" It was Quinn, but she didn't sound like her usual self, she kind of sounded like how she used to in the nights following Beths birth, when she would call him up late at night questioning her choice.

"Quinn?" He asked, sitting up in bed and turning the bedside lamp on, blinking at the brightness.

A few muffled sobs came down the phone.

"Puck – Its Finn." And then she started whimpering and Sam took the phone off of her. Puck felt his heart drop. Sure he didn't like Finn, after all he had married Rachel and kinda caused their break up and all, but still, Finn was his boy. Not even a badass like himself could deny that Finn and him would always be friends, they'd like grown up together and shit.

"What is it? Sam?" Puck asked quickly, his mouth suddenly dry. He desperately licked his lips as he waited for Sam to reply.

"Puck," Sam sighed deeply, "He got hit by a truck. They don't think...they don't think he's going to make it."

* * *

**November 23****rd**** -New York**

"Puck!" Quinn threw herself into his arms as soon as he stepped through the doorway and into the waiting room of the New York hospital that Finn had been taken to. He'd caught the first flight out that he could.

"Sssh, Q, don't cry." He whispered softly, stroking her hair trying to soothe her agitated sobs.

She pulled back and looked up at him, tears glistening in her pretty blue eyes.

"He's going to die Puck, he's not even thirty yet and he's going to die."

Puck swallowed the lump in his throat, because even he could admit that it wasn't fair. Why Finn?

"Hey man." He looked up from Quinn to see Sam, who while was more composed than his wife, was still visibly shaken. Sam and Finn had always been good friends, and he had been Finn's best man only a few months previously.

Puck nodded his acknowledgment because the giant lump in his throat was making it pretty hard to speak.

"What happened?" He managed to ask after a few minutes, when Quinn had calmed down, and had sat down on a hard plastic chair.

Sam shrugged, his eyes misty.

"They said he was crossing a road on one of those side streets, and the truck must have come out of nowhere. Whoever called 911 said it hit him straight on and he went flying." Sam stopped and shook his head, "They said that he never really stood a chance."

Puck looked away for a moment, the mental image in his head playing over and over.

"His injuries?"

"He broke his back straight off, his ribs, loads of different things. But its his brain that...thats the worst. He's brain dead basically. Too much internal bleeding and swelling, he's in a kind of coma, its just that, he's never going to wake up."

Puck nodded slowly, recalling all those shitty hospital dramas that he'd watched over the years. He knew enough to know that once you were pronounced brain dead, you may as well be real dead.

"Where's Rachel?" He asked, the words stinging his tongue.

"With Finn. She hasn't left his side. She's waiting until Carole and Burt get here before she makes any...decisions."

Whether or not to kill him, Puck thought bitterly.

"You can go see her if you want?" Sam prompted, his eyes drifting back to Quinn, who was now sitting stock still gazing off into the distance.

"Yeah. I think I might. Say goodbye to Finn and all."

Sam nodded gravely, and sat down beside Quinn, wrapping his arms around her frame.

Puck stayed still for a moment before heading in the direction of the room where Finn lay. What he saw almost broke his heart. Finn, lying on a bed, his face all beat up and his body hidden under a white sheet, hooked up to what seemed like a thousand machines all beeping, with a tube shoved down his throat. Beside him was Rachel, clutching desperately at his hands, tears tracks on her cheeks, and her eyes on his. She looked so broken and lost, like a scared little girl.

He knocked gently, feeling as though he was intruding. She looked up immediately, and then away again, back to Finn.

"Come in." She whispered in the saddest voice he had ever heard.

He slid in to the room, and looked around for another seat. Slowly he made his way across the room, and sat in the chair on the other side of Finns bed, opposite from Rachel.

"I'm sorry." He said and the words hung between them, neither knowing what he was sorry for. For Finn, for not going to her wedding, or for jus everything that had happened between them.

Rachel looked up at him, and took a deep breath.

"He would've hated this." She said softly, "He wouldn't want this, to be some kind of half being, that's not who he is. Was. So I tell myself that I should just turn it off, so that he doesn't have to live like this because its what he would've wanted. But then I cant bear the thought of it, I don't want to kill him, I want him to get better." Her voice grew steadily higher pitched, "And I keep thinking, 'what if tomorrow they invent a cure and I've turned it off', then he'll be dead for no reason. I would've killed him."

"You're not killing him." She looked startled, as if she'd forgotten he was there. She was clearly lost in her own world, tinged with grief and despair.

"But I know practically, that they wont invent a cure, and if they do it will be years from now. I just..." She looked away again, back to Finn, "I don't want him to be gone. I need him. I don't think I can live without him."

In any other circumstances those words would have broken his heart, but right now he had to put his own feelings aside and focus on Rachel, and Finn. Finn.

"We've only been married five months."

"I'm sorry." He whispered again, and reached his hand across the bed, placing it gently over her own, which lay on Finn's.

They sat in silence for several minutes, both listening to the beeps of the machines, Rachel watching her husbands face, committing every contour, every line to memory and Puck just watching his chest rise and fall courtesy of the ventilator.

"Noah?" He looked up and met her eyes.

"Yeah?"

"I'm pregnant." She whispered, her lip trembling as she spoke.

All the air whooshed out of his lungs, and he struggled to breathe. She was pregnant. Rachel was pregnant. His Rachel was pregnant with Finn's baby. Finn, who would never wake up. Finn, who was going to die.

"We were going to tell everyone at Thanksgiving. He was so excited." She looked back at Finn, smiling a little, "It was going to be perfect, a honeymoon baby. We were going to change my music room to a nursery, and Finn was going too..." For the first time since Puck had entered the room, he saw her cry, fat tears rolling down her cheeks as her body trembled and shook. He hurried around to her side of the bed, and held her close to him, her face buried deep into his chest, as her tears stained his shirt.

"Its okay, Rach, its all gonna be okay, I promise." He breathed in the smell of her shampoo, and savoured the familiarity of it all, it hadn't changed in the years that they'd been apart. She smelt like home. He didn't know what the hell he was going to do, all he knew was that Rachel needed someone, and he was going to be there for her, no way was she going to be alone.

She looked up and wiped away her tears, from her eyes and blinked a few times before shaking her head.

"No it not Noah. I'm going to have to do this alone, and my baby is never going to know their dad, and I just want to wake up! I want this to be a horrible dream, and I want to wake up and be back in his arms."

Puck rubbed soothing circles on her back as she spoke, listening intently.

"You wont be alone baby." He whispered softly, wearily glancing at Finn, wondering what his former best friend would have thought of this, "You have Brittany and Santana, Sam and Quinn, and your parents and everyone. You have me, I'll be here for you Rachel. I know that this is a shit situation, but I wont leave you if you don't want me too. But just say the word and I'll be gone."

A tear escaped her eye but she pulled back and looked back at Finn, taking his hands in her own.

"Noah, I appreciate it, but I need to be alone right now."

He nodded slowly, and with one last glance at Finn headed towards the door.

"Bye Buddy." He mumbled, as he shut it behind him.

Back in the waiting room, Sam and Quinn had been joined by Rachels two dads, Brittany and Santana and Burt and Carole Hummel.

"She said she wants to be alone for a bit." He said to the group of anxious adults. Puck sighed as he sat down beside Sam, who was stroking Quinn's hair as she slept, her head in his lap.

"She'll be okay." Sam said to Puck, turning to face him, "She's Rachel, she's the strongest person I know, she can get through this."

Puck nodded, and rested his head against the wall behind him and closed his eyes. He thought about all the times he and Finn had shared, right from when they were little kids, to when they were in High School. He remembered the first time they had gotten drunk together, way back when they thirteen. He remembered how after his dad had left, Finn had come around with his gameboy and said Puck could borrow it until he felt better. How after how he had fucked everything up with Quinn in sophomore year, Finn had still forgiven him. How he had spoken a single word to Finn since High School, when Finn had told Rachel he still had feelings for her, even though she was with Puck. He thought of all the wasted time, the last ten years. He thought about Rachel and her baby, how she was going to be alone. Somewhere amongst these thoughts he fell asleep, drifting off and escaping his reality.

* * *

He was woken a couple of hours later by Santana.

"Puckerman. Wake up."

He rubbed his eyes with his hands, and stared up at her, her eyes not meeting his and looking distinctly red rimmed.

"Whats happened?" He asked, suddenly wide awake.

"They're taking him off the ventilator." In all the years he'd known Santana he'd never seen her cry, but right now he could clearly see tears welling in her eyes.

"You need to go say goodbye."

He nodded and stood up, looking around the room. Everyone was huddled together, Quinn leaning heavily on Sam, whose bottom lip was trembling. Brittany was sitting with Kurt, who had his head in his hands, and Burt who was staring into space, and Rachels dads were talking with a doctor looking very serious.

He pushed Finn's door open, and he almost cried at the scene in front of him. Rachel was silent, but tears were streaming from her eyes, and she was shaking, as she stroked his hair with one hand, and desperately clutched his other. Carole had her hands clasped around one of his, and was misty eyed.

"Hey." Both women looked up at his voice, and then right back down to Finn, but Carole reluctantly stood up and leant against the wall. Taking it as his cue, Puck sat back down in his old seat and looked at his friend. It almost seemed as though he was sleeping.

"I'm sorry, I was a shit friend. I wish I could redo the last ten years." He sighed, not really knowing what to say, "I guess I should say goodbye, so bye, have fun up there, I'll miss you." He knew he sounded gay, but he honestly didn't really give a shit.

He nodded at Carole, and stood up, turning around and walking to Rachel.

"I meant what I said." Puck whispered in her ear, so softly that Carole couldn't hear. If Rachel heard she ignored him, too caught up in savouring her last few moments with her husband.

* * *

**November 27****th**** – Lima, Ohio.**

The funeral had been held two days after his death. The entire Glee club had flown in to New York to pay their respect to Finn. The whole ceremony he had watched Rachel, who had sat in the front row, sitting stock still, and looking directly in front of her. He had wanted to go up to her and say something, but he had felt as though everything had already been said. He knew in time they would talk about it, but right now she was grieving and he understood that. He would wait.

Sam had delivered a touching sermon, that had made everyone laugh (he had told the story of how Finn had prayed to Grilled Cheesus to be Quarterback, and how he had subsequently injured his shoulder) and cry. Quinn had talked about his loving and forgiving and nature, but had broken down halfway through and had to leave. Burt had talked about how he thought of Finn as his son, and how proud he was of him. Puck had felt like a fraud the entire time. Why should he even be invited, when he'd been shit to Finn for the last ten years?

When it was over, he had hugged everyone tight and hopped a plane back to Ohio. He wasn't needed there.

He had spent today going through his box labelled, High School crap. He had found pictures of Glee, and of Finn. Finn and him in their football uniforms, performing songs in Glee and them just hanging out. He had put those in a separate box, labelled FINN. He had then pushed both boxes back into the attic of his small house, and resumed life as normal.


End file.
